The Oxford Film Festival is proud to announce its lineup of festival films to play at the Malco Theater in Oxford, Miss. Feb. 21-24, 2013.
Opening the festival on Thursday, Feb. 21 will be a special Thacker Mountain Radio show from 6 to 7 p.m. followed by the world premiere of several 90-second community films and Joe York’s documentary “Ten.” from 7 to 8 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. Donations are accepted at the door for the two non-profit organizations.

The selected juried 2013 films are as follows:
Narrative Feature

Come Morning
Directed by Derrick Sims / 85 min.
As evening falls, two hunters, a 10-year-old boy and his grandfather, wander into the darkening woods to track down their recent kill. To their horror, they discover that, instead of a deer, they've shot a trespassing neighbor. With a history of land disputes with the neighbor's family fresh on his mind, the grandfather decides to hide the body.

Congratulations
Directed by Eric Levy / California / 93 min.
Jim and Bridget are on a road trip to visit Jim's mother on the anniversary of his father's death. Along the way, Jim proposes and Bridget says no. When they arrive at his mother's house, she showers them with congratulations. Caught up in the moment, they pretend to be engaged for the weekend.

The Discoverers
Directed by Justin Schwarz / 104 min.
Washed-up history professor Lewis Birch (Griffin Dunne) takes his begrudging teenage kids – Zoe and Jack – on a road trip to a conference in hopes of putting his career back on track. But, when Lewis’s estranged father Stanley goes AWOL on a Lewis and Clark historical reenactment trek, Lewis is forced to make a family detour.

Pictures of Superheroes
Directed by Don Swaynos / Texas / 74 min.
An out-of-work maid gets a job cleaning up after an overworked businessman and the aggressively messy roommate he's forgotten about, sending her into a surreal world of candy, insult comics, and pretend marriages.

Tennessee Queer
Directed by Earl Crew Goshorn / Tennessee / 90 min.
When “out and proud” Jason Potts returns to his Tennessee hometown he quickly learns that life has not gotten better for the gay high school kids. Wanting to give them some hope, Jason plans to hold the first ever gay pride parade down Main Street. Unknown to Jason, a conservative politician plots to use the parade for his own political reasons.

Howard (a puppet) has an existential crisis and nervous breakdown when he, and only he, can see his puppeteer: a featureless, humanoid shape that always looms over him, that he calls his Dark Companion. His relationship with his wife and friends quickly breakdown, when no one believes him, forcing Howard to take drastic measures.

Deafblind
Directed by Ewan Bailey / England / 16 min.

A deaf and blind woman and a young man share a spiritual and disturbing connection.

A young couple has a big plan to spice up their love life when their friend, Holly, comes over for dinner.

Double or Nothing
Directed by Nathaniel Krause / California / 11 min.

Clark and Becca leave a bar after a night out with friends. When a homeless man approaches them on the street, Clark gets an idea. Adam Brody, Louisa Krause and Keith David star in this dark comedy by master playwright Neil LaBute.

Emergency Contact
Directed by Jeffrey Ruggles / California / 6 min.

Things get dicey when a woman reveals to her live-in boyfriend that she's listed him as her emergency contact.

After a string of unsuccessful job interviews, out-of-work David realizes that someone is conspiring to keep him from finding employment. Based on a short story by Salman Rushdie.

The Hiccup

Directed by Matt Smukler / California / 10 min.

Two friends desperately trying to skip town find that an overheated radiator is the least of their problems.

The Potential Wives of Norman Mao
Directed by Derek Nguyen / New York / 9 min.

Norman Mao is an overweight, socially-awkward junior businessman from Hong Kong, who at the age of 33 is still a virgin and unwed. Desperate to get him married, his parents take him on an international junket across the globe to find him a worthy Chinese wife. Narrated by George Takei.

Libre Directo
Directed by Bernabé Rico Herrera / Spain / 12 min.

Having turned 60, Adela is living a life she never wanted. She has no children, a husband who walks all over her and, worst of all, nothing to look forward to. Then one day she has the chance to win 300,000 euros and leave her old life behind. All she has to do to get it is kick a ball into an open goal from the halfway line at half-time in a Spanish league match. Accepting the challenge, Adela starts training for the big day.

Pretty Monsters
Directed by G.B. Shannon and Ryan Parker / Tennessee / 11 min.
When a man and his young son spend the night at a motel in the town where the father grew up, the man gives in to an old temptation and invites a woman to their room.

Remake
Directed by Chris Tomkins / Australia / 6 min.

A smash and grab robbery takes an unexpected twist when two thieves find themselves confronted with a haul they can't possibly carry.

Split Time
Directed by Fabrice Bracq / France / 3 min.

A man and a woman in their mid-thirties. Attractive, single day-dreamers, they cross each other a million times without ever meeting. Yet, they are meant to be together.

Tracer Gun
Directed by Paul Grellong / California / 17 min.

A little mistake turns into a living nightmare when Abby apologizes for a drunken kiss by giving the right gift to the wrong man.

Why I Make Movies
Directed by Sam Frazier, Jr. / Alabama / 4 min.

A short explanation of one filmmaker's unsatisfying life at work and home but glamorous lifestyle when he's accepted into film festivals.

A history of the Antenna, Memphis' first punk rock club, and the musical explosion it inspired.

Eating Alabama
Directed by Andrew Grace / Alabama / 63 min.

A quest to eat locally becomes a meditation on community, the South and sustainability and a story about why food matters.

My Brooklyn: Race, Real Estate and the Future of Cities

Directed by Kelly Anderson / New York / 75 min.

Director Kelly Anderson's journey, as a Brooklyn gentrifier, to understand the forces reshaping her neighborhood. The film documents the redevelopment of Fulton Mall, a bustling African-American and Caribbean commercial district that - despite its status as the third most profitable shopping area in New York City - is maligned for its inability to appeal to the affluent residents who have come to live around it.

An Ordinary Hero
Directed by Loki Mulholland / Utah / 91 min.

The amazing true story of one white Southern woman's courage to choose her convictions and join the Civil Rights Movement. By the time she was 19, Joan Trumpauer was shot at, attacked, and put on death row but that's just the beginning of her remarkable journey to help change the world.

Plimpton! Starring George Plimpton as Himself

Directed by Thomas Bean / Alabama / 89 min.

Plimpton! is a feature length documentary film about the exciting life and times of Paris Review co-founder, participatory journalist, protean New York literary impresario, and friend to many, George Plimpton.

Uprising
Directed by Fredrik Stanton / New York / 85 min.

Tells the inside story of the Egyptian revolution from the perspective of its principal leaders and organizers, including four Nobel Peace Prize nominees. Their success in forcing the downfall of a brutal dictatorship has changed the face of the Middle East and provided hope for millions of oppressed people across the world.

Documentary Short

Boomtown

Directed by Torben Bernhard / Utah / 12 min.

In 1875, the Horn Silver Mine was discovered in the red rock cliffs of southwestern Utah. The town of Frisco was born and quickly became one of the most economically productive and notoriously violent towns in the wild West. 'Boomtown' blends serendipitously found audio interviews of the town sheriff and other remaining inhabitants, recorded just before their deaths, with images of the decaying ghost town in 2011.

This short documentary is a film about a pilgrim's hike across Spain on the popular Camino de Santiago. It is an impressionistic film that creates a casual narrative about the ancient journey and what it is like during its modern revival.

This film studies 'the baroque complexity of the South' through the musings of Mobile, Ala. native Eugene Walter, author, actor, artist, creator and chef. Using Walter's own radio broadcasts as narration, the film takes a peek at the simple ingredients that make up the Gulf Coast and its signature cuisine, gumbo, and shows how their staggered repetition builds something wholly unique and intricately beautiful.

Reborning
Directed by Helen Hood Scheer / California / 8 min.

Jean likes to make something out of nothing.

The Urban Herd
Directed by Sonja Alsofi / Washington / 13 min.

The story of how a small herd of goats in an inner city vacant lot brings joy and unity to a diverse community, and also leads to questions about the role of nature in the urban experience.

In a small apartment in Buenos Aires, an old woman eagerly awaits the birth of her grandchild and all the joys of becoming a grandmother. However, horrific circumstances mean that she will be forced to wait for over 30 years. Using real-life testimonials this animated-documentary raises issues of memory, repression and loss.

Jamón
Directed by Iria Lopez / England / 8 min.

Jose is a teenage pig living in a Spanish town, and he is the only pig in his family. One day a new neighbor moves in next door, and Jose starts to come to terms with who he really is.

A stop-motion animation exploring human relationships with anxiety. Through the use of metaphorical structure the main character demonstrates reactions and possible responses to an abstract feared stimulus.

Mayday
Directed by Trevor Jones / New Mexico / 4 min.

When an emergency crash landing leaves a young girl alone in the woods, she must defend herself against herself.

Strings
Directed by Tal Arbiv / Israel / 12 min.

A marionette puppet with aspirations of glory, realizes that the way to fulfill them is not that simple when you are a puppet with feelings.

April defies the odds by living. But when she outgrows the school system and no adult day programming is available, her family must find a way for her to continue to thrive with meaningful work and relationships.

Drawing on a Dream
Directed by Susan Dobbs and David Rae Morris / New York / 14 min.

The colorful complexities of the late Delta rocker and artist, Duff Dorrough of Ruleville.

Growing our Own
Directed by Philip Scarborough / Mississippi / 27 min.
Each summer, high school students from all types of racial and socioeconomic backgrounds from all over Mississippi attend a nine-day seminar on race, civil justice, and community while learning the dark history of civil rights of their state, not taught in Mississippi schools.

Originally entered in the 2012 Mississippi 48 Hour Film Challenge. Shot in the style of "The Office," this film tells the story of a superhero's retirement party.

Third Shift
Directed by Glenn Payne / Mississippi / 33 min.
Elaine and Melinda are holed up in a small town diner. They’ve been on the run and are now pinned into a corner. They know they’ve been followed, but by whom they aren’t sure. Their only comfort is that they are fairly certain that their pursuers don’t know their faces either. Can they uncover their assassin’s identity before it’s too late? Everyone is a suspect.

Tube
Directed by Jordan Berger / Mississippi / 25 min.

Melanie Moore, a sickly older woman, lives alone on her couch surrounded by items she has bought off the Home Shopping Channel. When her television abruptly shuts off in the middle of a purchase she is forced to face her worst fear: life without TV.

Non-Competition films to be showcased at the festival include:
A partial listing of films to be screened out of jury competition are
listed below. Future announcements of additional screenings will occur
in January.

Animation
Flatland

Directed by Jeffrey Travis and Dano Johnson / 2007 / 35 min.
When a mysterious visitor arrives from Spaceland, Arthur Square and his curious granddaughter Hex must come to terms with the truth of the third dimension, risking dire consequences from the evil Circles that have ruled Flatland for thousands of years.

With fans including Billy Bob Thornton, Dave Matthews, Peter Buck, Derek Trucks, Phish, Widespread Panic, and Blues Traveler, Colonel Bruce Hampton began his career with an unprecedented six figure record deal in 1970. After releasing the worst selling album in the history of Columbia Records, he made a brave decision and continued his musical career, devoting himself to creating pure art rather than attempt any commercial success.

Native Son
Directed by Mike McCarthy / Mississippi / 56 min.

Documents the making of the seven-foot tall “Tupelo Elvis” bronze statue by Mississippi sculptor Bill Beckwith, modeled on Elvis’ pose in the Roger Marshutz photograph shot at the 1956 Tupelo Fair, which was unveiled at Fairpark in Tupelo in August 2012.

Barton Segal sold Thad Lee a seemingly faulty copy of Renaldo and Clara, so Thad calls Barton for answers.

Lecile

Directed by Rex Jones / Mississippi / 29 min.

Lecile Harris, 76, began his career as a bullrider and bullfighter, but a devastating accident in the arena at the age of 52 led him into comedy as a full-time professional rodeo clown.

Music in The Hall and Oxford Sessions
Directed by Daniel Morrow and Danny Klimetz / Mississippi

Selections filmed during Music in the Hall, a grass roots music video series based in Oxford, Mississippi, and Oxford Sessions, a new video series featuring recordings done unplugged and in a location unique to every artist.

Pride and Joy

Directed by Joe York / Mississippi / 57 min.

For the past six years, Joe York has traveled across the South in a state vehicle chronicling the unique people, places, and culture of America’s tastiest region. See what he found in this opus on contemporary Southern food culture, produced by the Southern Foodways Alliance.

Rebels: James Meredith and the Integration of Ole Miss
Directed by Matthew Graves / Mississippi / 58 min.
On October 1, 1962 James Meredith became the first black student enrolled at the University of Mississippi. His journey to Ole Miss began with the State of Mississippi's denial and open defiance of the federal court's mandate of his admission. It ended on the night of September 30th as thousands of armed protestors rioted against the U.S. Marshals, Mississippi National Guard, and U.S. Troops sent by President Kennedy. This is the incredible true story of one man's mission for equality and a state that would do everything in its power to stop him

Ten

Directed by Joe York / Mississippi / 20 min.

To celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Oxford Film Festival, the University of Mississippi’s Media & Documentary Projects Center is teaming up with the Oxford Film Festival to create a documentary film starring 10-year-olds from the Oxford/Lafayette County community discussing the joys and trials of being 10 years old.

When her 10-year-old daughter Sally starts having difficulties, Mona sets out to help her despite no support from her husband Phil, the schools or the church.

Narrative Feature
Spotlight feature to be announced

Narrative Short
Tupelove
Directed by Mike McCarthy / Mississippi / 15 min.
Created for the Tupelo Convention & Visitors Bureau, Tupelove explores the boyhood mythos of Elvis, which features little-known places in and around Tupelo, Mississippi. Narrated by Elvis’ original drummer, D.J. Fontana.

A list of additional special screenings, panels and the 2013 judges will be announced shortly.

2013 Oxford Film Festival Sponsors
The 2013 Oxford Film Festival Sponsors help sustain not only the Festival but also the year-round programs of the non-profit festival. Their support is crucial to the mission of celebrating independent film. This year's Festival Sponsors include: Oxford Convention and Visitors Bureau, Malco and many more.

"What's it like to be ten?"
In honor of the upcoming 10th Annual Oxford Film Festival, the University of Mississippi's Media & Documentary Projects Center is teaming up with the Oxford Film Festival to create a documentary film starring 10-year-olds from the Oxford/Lafayette County community discussing the joys and trials of being 10 years old. The film will premiere at the Oxford Film Festival, Feb. 21-24, 2013, and the producers are eager to find 10-year-olds in the community to participate in the project.

The first round of interviews for the film will be held Thursday, Nov. 29 and Saturday, Dec. 1 at the Powerhouse Community Arts Center in Oxford. Interviews will only take 15 minutes and those interested can sign up by emailing the director of the film, Joe York (jayork13[at]me.com).